What is Swachh Bharat Mission?
The Swachh Bharat Mission is a Clean India Initiative led by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MOHUA) and launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2nd October 2014. This imitative seeks to inspire collective efforts to reduce and eventually eliminate open defecation (ODF), as well as maintain cleanliness in public places across India. It also aims to create an enabling environment for healthy living conditions in order to promote economic growth and prevent diseases caused by foul air.
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan has been implemented through various activities including awareness creation, construction of toilets (now accessed by about 97% of the population), adoption of habitable areas, Solid Waste Management, Financing mechanism, & maintenance mechanism amongst other strategies.
Overall, this initiative is not just important for communal hygiene but also shows our nation’s commitment towards the wellbeing and hygiene standards for its citizens.
What is Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0 ?
The launch of Swachh Bharat Mission- Urban 2.0 -1st October 2022 in India, with the aim of maintaining the status of Open Defecation Free (ODF) across urban areas in the country. This mission is a continuation of the earlier SBM-Urban initiative 1.0 (2014-2022), with the goal of ensuring sustained cleanliness and sanitation in urban areas, thereby contributing to a healthier and more hygienic environment for residents.
Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0: Key Components & Focus Areas
- Used Water Management: New component introduced to improve overall ecosystem in urban India with a focus on no untreated used water discharge into water bodies and maximum reuse of treated used water.
- Mechanized Cleaning Operations: Emphasis on eradication of hazardous entry into sewers and septic tanks through the mechanization of their cleaning operations.
- Water+ Protocol: Compliance with Water+ protocol to prevent environmental pollution and ensure safe collection, transportation, and treatment of used water and faecal sludge.
- ‘Garbage Free Cities’: Overall vision of creating ‘Garbage Free Cities’ in urban India.
How it different from Swachh Bharat Mission 1.0?
SBM 1.0 and SBM 2.0 both aim to achieve the goal of a clean and open defecation free (ODF) India, but there are several differences between the two.
SBM 1.0 was launched 2nd October 2014 with the focus on building toilets and declaring ODF status in rural areas. It aimed to eliminate open defecation by constructing toilets in every household and making sure that all communities practice safe sanitation.
On the other hand, SBM 2.0 was launched on 1st October 2022 with a focus on sustaining the ODF status and improving overall sanitation conditions in both rural and urban areas. SBM 2.0 places emphasis on ensuring proper operation and maintenance of toilets, safe management of solid and liquid waste, and promoting hygiene and sanitation education.
Overall, SBM 2.0 is a more comprehensive approach to sanitation that aims to maintain and improve upon the progress made under SBM 1.0.
Table to illustrate the focus of Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0
Table 1: Key Interventions in Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0
Table 2: Objectives of Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0
What is ODF ?
Swachh Bharat Mission is an incredibly important government scheme in India that focuses on improving sanitation, cleanliness and hygiene across the nation. One of the key elements of the mission is Open Defecation Free (ODF) campaign, which aims to ensure that:
- No one practices open defecation
- All households have access to working toilets with proper disposal systems
- The ODF campaign involves creating awareness about the need for proper sanitation and constructing sanitary latrines in all rural households
As a result, this will reduce pollution and ensure better health for all citizens, while also paving the way for infrastructure development throughout the country.
What is ODF+ / ODF PLUS?
ODF+ or ODF Plus is an extended concept that builds upon the foundation of “Open Defecation Free” (ODF). It is a comprehensive approach that not only eliminates the practice of open defecation, but also aims to maintain and sustain cleanliness, hygiene, and waste management practices in a community, region, or state.
It focuses on providing technical support to ensure that the toilets constructed and ODF declared villages and towns remain operational. This includes ensuring maintenance of toilets, proper functioning of hardware, availability of sufficient water for toilet flushes, solid waste management systems, sanitation workers for cleaning duties as well as awareness campaigns aimed at promoting toilet usage and hygiene practices.
- Solid and Liquid Waste Management: The management of both solid and liquid waste should be in place and working effectively.
- Sanitation and Hygiene Education: The community should be educated on the importance of hygiene and sanitation and encouraged to adopt good hygiene practices.
- Operation and Maintenance of Toilets: The toilets should be regularly maintained and kept in good working condition.
- Monitoring and Evaluation: Regular monitoring and evaluation should be done to ensure that the ODF+ status is sustained.
ODF+ is an important step towards making a community truly clean and hygienic. It not only stops open defecation but also ensures that the community is taking all necessary steps to maintain cleanliness and prevent the spread of diseases.
What is ODF ++ /ODF PLUS PLUS ?
ODF++ or ODF Plus Plus is an important element of India’s Swachh Bharat Mission. It stands for the “Open Defecation Free Plus Plus” initiative, which is designed to ensure that 100 % of the rural population declared ODF (Open Defecation Free) & ODF +.
The ODF++ initiative covers a guidelines and variety of activities related to FSSM -Faecal Sludge and Safety management
The conditions include:
- No Open Discharge: This condition ensures that no toilet of any kind should discharge into open drains, land, or water bodies.
- Safe Emptying: Regular and safe emptying of faecal matter in onsite sanitation structures must be carried out at least once every two years.
- Safe Conveyance and Treatment: All faecal sludge must be conveyed and treated safely in compliance with CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) standards.
- Maintained Sewer Networks: If sewer networks exist, they must be maintained and all overflow or leakage issues must be resolved within 6 hours of being noticed.
- Treated Sewage: All transmitted sewage must be treated at a sewage treatment plant, as per norms.
- Operated and Maintained Treatment Facilities: Sewage/septage treatment facilities must be operated and maintained as per norms.
- No Untreated Waste: Where sewer networks do not exist, no untreated faecal waste should be discharged or dumped in the open environment such as water bodies, drains, open land, etc.
- Treated Sludge Disposal: Treated sludge must be disposed of at a designated site such as (Sewage Treatment Plant-STP) & (Faecal sludge treatment Plant-FSTP)
What is Water+ /Water Plus in Swachh Bharat Mission?
Water Plus is a component of Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0, launched by the Prime Minister of India, which aims to improve the overall used water management ecosystem in Urban India.
Swachh Bharat Mission’s Water Plus protocol requires all wastewater from households, commercial establishments, drains, nallahs, etc. to be treated to satisfactory levels according to CPCB norms before being released into the environment, with proper maintenance of wastewater and sewage treatment facilities, cost recovery through reuse/recycling, and sustainability ensured.”
These conditions aim to ensure that human waste is managed in a safe and hygienic manner, preventing public health issues and environmental contamination.